


Atlas

by Judgement



Category: Fate/Grand Order, Fate/stay night & Related Fandoms, Fate/stay night - All Media Types
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Canon, Angst and Drama, Eventual Romance, F/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Reader-Insert, Slow Burn, Time Travel Fix-It
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-02
Updated: 2020-10-02
Packaged: 2021-03-07 21:48:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,562
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26764564
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Judgement/pseuds/Judgement
Summary: You may have been one of the last remaining masters but you were not the hero of the story. Not in your eyes. But you would shoulder the burdens so that one day humanity could sing stories about the real hero.
Relationships: Fuuma Kotarou & Reader, Gilgamesh | Archer/Reader
Comments: 11
Kudos: 44





	Atlas

“—rd!… Plea.. act!”

_ What? _ You drifted through the dark with lead-filled limbs of exhaustion. It seeped into your skin, settling into your bones, and tempted you further into its abyss. Something told you that you weren’t sure you wanted to wake up and acknowledge the voice, that this place is much quieter, much safer.

“M—! ... up… me!”

_ Who? _ Whoever it is, their voice shattered the surface of the abyss and reached for you within. Warmth trickled in, slowly at first. But it’s enough that it made you wonder why you’re so cold to begin with. You clung to the warmth even as it grew hot, uncomfortably so too exhausted to move. You couldn’t even open your eyes, so why should you fight and struggle against it? You didn’t have any energy to begin with.. Maybe if you rested longer, just a bit longer, you’ll find it in you to struggle.

_ Master~ You need to wake up, now. _

The dark abyss bloomed with white heat behind closed lids, the heavy feeling that lined your limbs melted beneath its heat. All at once it felt like someone doused you in cold water while your insides boiled alive. It’s agonizing, and the scream that wanted to rip from your throat ended up dead on your lips in a silent plea when your eyes snapped open. Tears blurred your vision and the quiet of the abyss faded, replaced by the crackle of fire. The distant sounds of metal clashing and the wail of forgotten sirens hung in the air. Smoke billowed up into the night sky and the scathing heat of the surrounding fire replaced the cold you felt.

“My Lord! Thank goodness.” 

A man knelt at your side, hair swept into his eyes. Beneath it you can see the red of his hair matched the color of his eyes. The narrowed black slit of a pupil flicking over your face. 

“Your wha?” The words came out slurred.

“You-oh. Please make a contract with me as your servant!” 

He released your hand, which you didn’t even notice he held to bow properly to you. Kneeling down with one arm at his side while the other rested over his bent knee. He bowed his head to you and waited respectfully. But you could tell that he’s tense, his entire body coiled like a snake ready to strike. But the surrounding scenery stole your attention, leading to the overturned cars and the flames that danced throughout the burning city. The smoke that filled your lungs billowed from the nearby buildings and cars, anything that could burn, was.  _ Everything is burning, why is everything burning? Where am I? Hell. It must be hell. Why else would everything be on fire? _

“What’s going on?! Am I dead? Are we in hell?” Hysteria edged into your tone.

“What? No!” His head snapped up with a frown at the building hysteria in your tone, “You are not dead and definitely not in hell, my Lord!”  _ Someone like you could never be in hell. I would never let you go there.  _ “Please, I need you to trust me. Things are dangerous right now, and you are without a servant. Forge a contract with me and I will do everything I can to protect you.” He swore it this time.

“Where are the others?” Marie said that everyone would summon their servant when they all reached the first singularity. But you hadn’t expected it to be like this. “Wh—” Your breath hitched, eyes caught on something that appeared behind the man who attempted to pledge his service and loyalty to you. 

The look on your face must have said everything as he spun on his heel with a Kusarigama in hand. If looks could kill the shadow servant would’ve dropped dead from the murderous glare that glinted in his red eyes. 

“My Lord.”

His tone is stern and you fumbled, “I-I don’t even know how to make a contract! They taught us that the summoning was the contract!” You scooted back, away from the fight.

He spoke under his breath, something that sounded like an incantation but was too low for you to hear properly. He’s gone in the next second along with the shadow servant, leaving you alone. The immediate silence that followed their disappearance felt like the world had paused. Only the distant sounds of the city as it burned, the heavy thudding of your heart and labored breathing filled your ears. The smallest shift of rubble and debris beneath your hands and feet sounded louder than it should have in the eerie silence. The shadow servant’s body dropped dead a few feet away, breaking the spell, and the world snapped back into play. You fought back a startled gasp, watching as it convulsed once before disintegrating like shredded paper, piece by piece that burnt away in the air. 

The man with red hair appeared beside you and dropped to his knee again. One hand a fist against the broken asphalt and the other resting on his knee, head bowed. 

“I am Fūma Kotarō. Servant, Assassin. I swear my loyalty to you and the commands in which you bear. Even with this appearance of mine, will you accept me as your servant?”

Your hand burned and assumed it was something from the debris, but you didn’t check, just ripped it from the ground and to your chest. The nervous fluttering of your heart as it beat against your ribs and felt like it’d burst out of your chest. 

“I-I accept?” 

You’re uncertain of how this works. Nobody told you how to go about an already summoned servant or that it was something that was even possible. But your hand burned again, seared against your skin and you let out a startled yelp holding out the offending appendage this time to get a look. There, you can see the red lines burning into your skin, twisting like elegant red ink to form the command seals. Despite the pain that felt like a flame to the nerves there, you found yourself captivated and unable to look away. Partly because you felt like the red should be blood and partly because you believed you would start bleeding from it at any moment.

“Thank you, I promise not to fail you.”  _ Not again, never again.  _ “But I’m afraid I must explain things as we move. We have to meet up with your other servant.”

“Other servant?” You watched as Kotarō swiftly stood to his feet and looked off into the distance, then back down at you. 

“Yes, he sent me to retrieve you while he held back some gathering shadow servants that attempted to ambush us. We must move, I am sure he is capable, but without a contract he is using up his own mana reserves.”

“O-Okay, but am I supposed to get more than one servant?” You hadn’t remembered that in the briefing. But you also hadn’t remembered them mentioning Fuyuki’s singularity meant that the entire city was up in flames, either. Then again, you had stepped out to use the restroom, so perhaps something had changed abruptly? 

You stood up, mind spinning in circles in a way that you had a hard time keeping up with. Abruptly it felt like the world started spinning, too. Nausea hit and black dots danced across your vision, then suddenly the ground was rushing up to meet you. Something that Kotarō noticed and instinctively, with reflexes faster than anything you’d ever accomplish, he caught you.

“Sorry,” you stammered an apology.

It felt like your energy drained away. Replaced by the fatigue from the abyss, coming back to weigh you down. “I can get it together, I promise.” You didn’t want to make him regret contracting with you by displaying such weakness. 

“Forgive me,” with fluid grace he scooped you up off your feet and into his arms, bridal style. “Forming a contract with an already summoned servant takes a heavier toll on you, my Lord. Please bear with it for now, I will carry you and explain as we go.”

You wanted to protest, but he already started running and the world that was already spinning, spun much faster as it passed you by. You closed your eyes and tried to focus on what he said, instead. Unable to answer all the questions that you had, he answered what he could to the best of his ability. He said he was summoned with one other servant and given instructions to find you. Who gave those instructions wasn’t clear as he didn’t get to see the person and before he could question them, shadow servants appeared. With his own mana supply being short without a master, your other servant tasked him with finding and bringing you to him while he held the shadows back.

“Who is the other servant?” You cracked an eye open and fought down the nausea, catching the small smile on Kotarō’s face.

“We’re almost there, you should be able to see his fight from here.” He said and stopped atop a building, balanced on the ledge of the roof with ease.

Gold bloomed, illuminating to your left and when you looked over, the sight was awe-inspiring in its beauty and power both. A feeling short-lived, replaced by anxiety and fear. Only one servant you read about had an ability like this; a wall of weapons that opened up from another world, another place in time. Even in a city on fire, he stood out like the brightest burning flame. Gilgamesh, King of Heroes, stood in the center of the ruined lot. Arms crossed over his bare chest with his back to you and your servant. Focused on something across the broken lot, but distance made it hard to see. You assumed that it must be another shadow servant like the one Kotarō fought and said that the King of Heroes was battling. Whoever or whatever it was, made the wise decision to retreat. Disappearing into thin air a second before a blade from the King’s armory found itself impaled where the shadow once stood. 

Deciding now was the best time to approach with all the opposing servants gone, Kotarō stepped off the ledge. Your stomach plummeted from both the drop and the fact he intended to bring you closer to the King. “Kotarō! No! Nono— _ wait!  _ There’s no way they approved of him as my servant!”

You could have sworn you heard the servant chuckle, “Trust him, my Lord, he will be your greatest ally.”

You wanted to protest, that wasn’t the point you were trying to make! But the words ended up dead, stuck in your throat, unable to speak, let alone protest. He moved too quickly and now he stood in front of the King with you still tucked in his arms. The King didn’t acknowledge either of you yet, eyeing the spot the shadow servant had vanished from. You didn’t mind if he never acknowledged you in that moment. Nervously clutching Kotarō’s neck tighter, hopeful that someone from Chaldea’s team would come running to say it was a mistake. That Gilgamesh wasn’t your assigned servant, and they’d spare you the embarrassment when the King outright rejected someone so incompetent as their master.

After a minute that felt like a lifetime, the golden wall of weapons he was famous for sank back. Disappearing back into the armory which he called them from. The golden glow it produced faded away until only the light from distant flickering flames remained. The King turned his head to you, sharp vermillion eyes snapping to your face, and you found your breath caught in your throat. He scrutinized you, eyes searching yours, and in those red depths you could see something. A flicker of emotion, foreboding and calculated, but hiding something deeper, something that reminded you strangely of loss. Satisfied, he opened his mouth to speak—and you hiccuped.

His mouth snapped shut and you felt Kotarō shudder, the arms that held you tightened in a knee-jerk reaction not to laugh. Your face burned in embarrassment and you tried to stammer something,  _ anything _ out, but nothing came. Instead, you stared at the King who returned the gaze, unflinchingly, before he abruptly snorted and  _ laughed _ . Shell-shocked into silence, you glanced helplessly at Kotarō, who had a small smile on his face. But otherwise seemed to keep his laughter under control.

“Fuhuha!” the King grinned smugly, unfolded his arms from his chest and held a hand out. “Form a contract with me, mongrel.”

Kotarō set you down carefully, and when he was sure you wouldn’t rush and greet the ground, he respectfully took a step back. It made the situation feel oddly intimate, and you resisted the urge to glance back at him in question. Instead, you found your eyes glued to the King, unable to look away with a dozen questions you wanted to ask. Primarily  _ why me  _ but you felt tongue tied and feared you would anger him for questioning it. Everyone who knew of him knew about his violent and unpredictable temper.

Then there was the other half of you which wanted to accept the offer. To convince yourself that he had found something in you worthy of serving. Before someone from Chaldea realized the mistake and came running to stop it, at least. You didn’t want the prestige so much as the acknowledgement that the King of Heroes had chosen  _ you _ . That must mean you had something that set you apart from the rest, right?

“I accept.” 

The back of your hand burned again as another set of lines carved through your nerves and seared into your flesh. You grit your teeth and realized after the pain settled that you had squeezed the King’s hand in a vice grip. Clutched it like it would soothe the way your burned nerves. Whether or not he noticed, he chose not to comment and released your hand only after you let go. When you looked at your hand, the mark there was larger and more intricate. With strokes dyed red against your skin like a permanent tattoo, you stared at it, confused. Did summoning more than one servant grant you more command seals? 

The muffled conversations between your servants felt distant, muffled, and when you looked up black dots danced in your vision a second time. Then it hit fully, the cost of two servants and the toll it took on your mana that Kotarō mentioned when contracting already summoned servants. The dots ate away at your sight, blinding you and leaving your legs feeling like they were going to give out. You reached out, blindly searching for Kotarō to support you. He noticed and immediately grabbed your flailing limbs.

“Forgive me, my Lord.” 

The thudding of your heart and shallow breathing felt obnoxiously loud, or maybe the world had become muffled, you couldn’t tell. Too busy willing the world to stop spinning on its axis and for a moment you think that maybe you can keep it together. Shake off the abyss that called to you. But his hands were behind your buckling knees and he swept you up into his arms a second time with practiced ease. The motion proved too much and you felt yourself slip away. Catching only a portion of Kotarō’s whispered promise to protect you before you were limp in his arms.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments > Kudos. Thanks!


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